"The way in which Archie dies is everything that you would expect of Archie," Archie Comics publisher and co-CEO Jon Goldwater told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview published Monday. "He dies heroically. He dies selflessly. He dies in the manner that epitomizes not only the best of Riverdale but the best of all of us. It's what Archie has come to represent over the past almost 75 years."

There will be two books marking the death of Archie and the end of the series — The Death of Archie on July 16 and A Celebration, released July 23.